The Quantum Origin of Magnetic Reconnection in Astrophysical Plasmas"
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: This paper introduces a revolutionary framework for understanding magnetic reconnection as a quantum phase-cycle collapse, rather than a classical topological rearrangement. Departing from standard magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) models, the work proposes that reconnection is triggered when a coherent magnetic phase structure—governed by a quantized cycle of field interactions—exceeds its magnetic information retention threshold and undergoes spontaneous collapse. At the heart of the model is Magnetic Information Density (MID), a quantifiable measure of coherent magnetic structuring that governs the integrity of large-scale field configurations. When energetic or structural perturbations exceed a critical MID threshold, the magnetic phase coherence collapses, releasing stored topological tension in the form of reconnection. This collapse is not resistively driven but emerges from quantum-level information degradation—a formatting failure in field coherence rather than a fluid instability. The Phase-Cycle Collapse Framework offers powerful explanatory potential for reconnection events in pulsar magnetospheres, stellar coronae, and black hole accretion disks. It bridges quantum electrodynamics and relativistic plasma physics, reframing reconnection as a self-timed quantum transition rather than a stochastic classical event. This paper also outlines new testable predictions for MID decay patterns and reconnection thresholds in highly magnetized astrophysical environments, laying the groundwork for observational validation and future laboratory analogs. ---
Author: Wilcox, Clyde Jermaine
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W6930730929
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